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UPDATE: It’s ironic that this post runs on the day that Kodak announced the death of Kodachrome. Yes, that old stalwart is no more. Alas, we knew you well. R.I.P.

My head is just chock full of useless trivia, like vintage song titles that make great blog entry headlines.  But there is someone else, besides Sandy Denny and Judy Collins , “Who Knows Where the Time Goes.”

He’s a photographer named George Remington from Cleveland, Ohio and he compiled a list that more or less sums up the reasons why our lives are being sucked down the twittering rabbit holes of the info-cloud and the eternal, unending, everlasting upgrade shuffle.

So if you’re wondering why you’re working harder but getting a lot less done (and a lot less billed!) make a mental note of how long it takes you to reach the bottom of the list, and you may lament, as I do, how many days pass without ever making it down to those two last items, despite all the conveniences of our new digital reality.

(BTW, the watch illustration is a shot I did for Nikon’s “Hands on Guide to Creative Lighting” DVD using Nikon’s SB-R1C1 closeup Speedlight setup…a nifty little “piece of kit,” as the Brits would say.)

So, hit the jump for the list that describes where my time, and probably yours, goes….

• Read emails
• Answer emails
• Send new emails
• Network on Facebook
• Update my MySpace page
• Network on Linked In
• Network on Plaxo
• Read web forums
• Post on web forums
• Research consumer trends
• Research the next shoot
• Plan the next shoot
• Scout locations for next shoot
• Speak with talent for next shoot
• Add new images to web site
• Write new opinions on blog
• Upload images to blog
• Optimize website for search engines
• Add new links to website
• Add new images to Archive to sell prints
• Keyword images
• Caption images
• Study image sales data
• Retouch photographs
• Scan model’s release forms
• Add identifying photos to model’s release forms
• Upload model’s release form to Stock agency’s portal
• Upload low rez images to Stock agency’s portal
• Upload high rez images to Stock agency’s portal
• Archive photographs
• Find image that you promised to someone
• Retouch image that you promised to someone
• Post images on ftp for download that you promised to someone
• Make prints people requested
• Research web marketing strategies
• Make photo calls to ad agencies to beg for work
• Update email mailing list
• Update postcard mailing list
• Design and layout post card
• Send post card print order
• Buy stamps
• Address and mail post cards
• Send marketing emails
• Plan to teach photo seminar to supplement income
• Market photo seminar
• Teach photo seminar
• Speak to client about possible photo assignment
• Research possible photo assignment
• Create estimate for possible photo assignment
• Send invoices
• Pay invoices
• Research new available equipment
• Find out why camera is not working properly
• Order new strobe lamps
• Test new camera that just arrived
• Learn how to use the new camera that just arrived
• Repair cameras and equipment
• Sell old cameras and equipment on ebay
• Spend hours on phone with tech support to figure out why upgraded software doesn’t work
• Download and backup the 120 GB of images shot last trip
• View at 100% and edit and renumber (could take weeks)
• Backup your 6, 12 or whatever terabytes of data
• Double check all the missing keywords your agency did and write to them
• Register all images shot last month to the copyright office
• Organize and register published and unpublished analog file of 250,000 slides
• Update new software on computer
• Update new software on laptop
• Learn new Photoshop techniques
• Learn new web gallery techniques
• Learn new Lightroom functionality
• Learn new proprietary camera software
• Read about new computers you should buy
• Read about new software you should buy
• Fix broken computer
• Buy more data storage
• Update Digital Asset Management system

• Relax and think creative thoughts
• Take photographs